📁 Folder Structure

How you organize your book files determines how Booklore groups them. This page covers how the detection works and the best ways to lay out your library folders.

📖 Supported Formats

Booklore recognizes the following file types:

Category	Extensions
Ebooks	`.epub`, `.pdf`, `.mobi`, `.azw3`, `.azw`, `.fb2`
Comics	`.cbz`, `.cbr`, `.cb7`
Audiobooks	`.m4b`, `.m4a`, `.mp3`

Files with any other extension are silently ignored during scans.

🔍 How Detection Works

Booklore supports two organization modes, configured per library:

Mode	Behavior
Book Per Folder	Every file in the same folder belongs to one book. Simple and predictable.
Auto Detect	Files are grouped by name similarity using fuzzy matching and series detection. More flexible but requires sensible naming.

Which Mode to Choose

Book Per Folder is the safer choice if you keep each book in its own folder. Auto Detect is better when you have mixed structures or multiple books per folder.

🏷️ Name Normalization

Before comparing filenames, Booklore normalizes them by:

Removing the file extension
Replacing underscores with spaces
Stripping format indicators in brackets: [epub], (pdf), (audiobook), [m4b]
Stripping part/disc indicators: (part 1), [cd 2], - disc 3
Stripping trailing author names: - J.R.R. Tolkien
Repositioning trailing articles: Hobbit, The becomes The Hobbit
Collapsing whitespace and lowercasing

So American_Gods (Audiobook).m4b and American Gods.epub both normalize to american gods and will group together.

📂 Folder-Based Grouping (Auto Detect)

When files are inside a subfolder, Booklore uses the folder name as the reference title. Each file is compared against it:

Exact or substring match groups the file with the folder
Edition suffixes are stripped before comparing. This includes:
- Ordinal editions: first edition, 2nd edition, 10th anniversary
- Production styles: unabridged, abridged, complete, full cast
- Special editions: deluxe, special, collector
- Format labels: audiobook, audio book, ebook, e-book
Fuzzy matching (similarity threshold of 60%) catches minor naming differences

Library/
└── American Gods/
    ├── American Gods.epub              ← matches folder name
    ├── American Gods.pdf               ← matches folder name
    └── American Gods (Unabridged).m4b  ← matches after stripping edition suffix

All three files become one book with three format options.

🔢 Series Detection

Files with series indicators are kept as separate books, even if they share a folder. Recognized patterns:

Pattern	Examples
`Book N`	`Mistborn Book 1.epub`, `Mistborn Book 2.epub`
`Vol. N` / `Volume N`	`Vol. 1 - The Eye of the World.epub`
`Part N`	`Part 1 - Foundation.epub`
`Chapter N` / `Episode N`	`Chapter 1.epub`
`#N` / `No. N`	`#1 - Batman Year One.cbz`
Bare number prefix	`01 - The Colour of Magic.epub`, `02 - The Light Fantastic.epub`
Trailing number	`Mistborn 1.epub`, `Mistborn 2.epub`

Library/
└── Mistborn/
    ├── Mistborn Book 1.epub  ← separate book
    ├── Mistborn Book 2.epub  ← separate book
    └── Mistborn Book 3.epub  ← separate book

📄 Root-Level Files

Files placed directly at the library root (not in any subfolder) are grouped by exact normalized name match only. No fuzzy matching, no edition stripping.

Library/
├── Dune.epub        ← groups with Dune.pdf (same base name)
├── Dune.pdf         ← groups with Dune.epub
├── The Hobbit.epub  ← standalone
└── 1984.pdf         ← standalone

Root-Level Limitation

Fuzzy matching and edition stripping only apply inside subfolders. At root level, filenames must match exactly (after normalization) to group together. Use subfolders for reliable multi-format grouping.

🎧 Audiobook Folder Detection

When a folder contains 2 or more audio files and no ebook/comic files, Booklore checks whether the folder represents a single audiobook or a series of separate audiobooks:

Single audiobook: If all audio files share essentially the same base title (after stripping track numbers, part/disc indicators, and generic terms like chapter, track, intro), the entire folder is treated as one audiobook. The folder name becomes the book title.
Series folder: If audio files have distinctly different base titles, each file becomes its own book.

Library/
└── Project Hail Mary/
    ├── 01 - Chapter 1.mp3     ← same base title
    ├── 02 - Chapter 2.mp3     ← same base title
    └── 03 - Chapter 3.mp3     ← same base title

This entire folder becomes one audiobook called "Project Hail Mary".

📚 Recommended Structures

Put each book in its own folder. The folder name is used as the reference title. Pick the layout below that matches your file collection.

📖 Ebooks Only

Library/
├── American Gods/
│   └── American Gods.epub
├── Dune/
│   └── Dune.pdf
└── The Hobbit/
    └── The Hobbit.mobi

📖 Ebooks with Multiple Formats

All files in the same folder are grouped as one book with multiple format options. Filenames don't need to match exactly; fuzzy matching handles minor differences like American_Gods.epub or American Gods - Neil Gaiman.epub.

Library/
├── American Gods/
│   ├── American Gods.epub
│   ├── American Gods.pdf
│   └── American Gods.azw3
└── Project Hail Mary/
    ├── Project Hail Mary.epub
    └── Project Hail Mary.pdf

🎧 Single-File Audiobook

A single .m4b, .m4a, or .mp3 file in a folder is treated like any other book format.

Library/
├── Project Hail Mary/
│   └── Project Hail Mary.m4b
└── Dune/
    └── Dune.m4b

🎧 Chaptered Audiobook

When a folder contains 2 or more audio files, the entire folder is treated as one audiobook. The folder name becomes the book title. Individual chapter files are not listed as separate books.

Library/
└── Project Hail Mary/
    ├── 01 - Chapter 1.mp3
    ├── 02 - Chapter 2.mp3
    ├── 03 - Chapter 3.mp3
    └── 04 - Chapter 4.mp3

Filenames don't matter. Booklore only checks that the folder has 2 or more audio files. The folder name becomes the book title. Any naming pattern works, including Audible/CD rip conventions:

Library/
└── Project Hail Mary/
    ├── projecthailmary_01_of_16.mp3
    ├── projecthailmary_02_of_16.mp3
    └── projecthailmary_03_of_16.mp3

What won't work

Only 1 audio file in a folder is not treated as a folder-based audiobook. The file is added as an individual entry:

Library/
└── Dune/
    └── Dune Part 1.mp3         ← individual audiobook, not folder-based

Multiple different audiobooks in one folder are wrongly merged into a single entry:

Library/
└── Audiobooks/                 ← detected as one audiobook "Audiobooks"
    ├── Project Hail Mary.m4b
    └── Dune.m4b

Give each audiobook its own folder to avoid this.

Chaptered audio files alongside ebook files in the same folder creates separate books. The ebook and the folder-based audiobook end up with different grouping keys internally:

Library/
└── Project Hail Mary/
    ├── Project Hail Mary.epub  ← detected as one book
    ├── 01 - Chapter 1.mp3     ← detected as a separate audiobook
    ├── 02 - Chapter 2.mp3
    └── 03 - Chapter 3.mp3

If you have both an ebook and a chaptered audiobook for the same title, keep them in separate folders:

Library/
├── Project Hail Mary/
│   └── Project Hail Mary.epub
└── Project Hail Mary (Audiobook)/
    ├── 01 - Chapter 1.mp3
    ├── 02 - Chapter 2.mp3
    └── 03 - Chapter 3.mp3

📖🎧 Ebook + Audiobook Together

Ebook and single-file audiobook (.m4b) can coexist in the same folder. They are grouped as one book with multiple format options.

Library/
└── American Gods/
    ├── American Gods.epub
    ├── American Gods.pdf
    └── American Gods.m4b

Only single-file audiobooks

This only works with a single .m4b/.m4a/.mp3 per folder. Chaptered audiobooks (2+ audio files) in the same folder as ebooks will be detected as separate books. See Chaptered Audiobook > What won't work above.

🦸 Comics

Supported extensions: .cbz, .cbr, .cb7. Works just like ebooks.

Library/
├── Batman Year One/
│   └── Batman Year One.cbz
└── Watchmen/
    ├── Watchmen.cbz
    └── Watchmen.pdf

📚 Series

Give each book in the series its own folder:

Library/
├── Mistborn 1 - The Final Empire/
│   ├── The Final Empire.epub
│   └── The Final Empire.m4b
├── Mistborn 2 - The Well of Ascension/
│   └── The Well of Ascension.epub
└── Mistborn 3 - The Hero of Ages/
    └── The Hero of Ages.epub

📂 Author Folders

You can optionally nest book folders inside author folders. Booklore only looks at the immediate parent folder for grouping, so intermediate author directories don't interfere.

Library/
├── Neil Gaiman/
│   ├── American Gods/
│   │   ├── American Gods.epub
│   │   └── American Gods.m4b
│   └── Coraline/
│       └── Coraline.epub
├── Brandon Sanderson/
│   ├── Elantris/
│   │   └── Elantris.epub
│   ├── Mistborn 1 - The Final Empire/
│   │   └── The Final Empire.epub
│   └── Mistborn 2 - The Well of Ascension/
│       └── The Well of Ascension.epub
└── Andy Weir/
    └── Project Hail Mary/
        ├── Project Hail Mary.epub
        └── Project Hail Mary.pdf

📄 Flat Files (No Folders)

All files at the library root with no subfolders. Multi-format grouping requires exact name matches since root-level files don't get fuzzy matching.

Library/
├── American Gods.epub
├── American Gods.pdf
├── Dune.epub
├── The Hobbit.epub
└── 1984.pdf

No folder-based audiobooks at root level

Audio files placed directly at the library root are always treated as individual entries, even if there are multiple. Folder-based audiobook detection only works inside subfolders.

🚫 Ignored Paths

Booklore automatically skips these during scans:

Hidden files and directories (anything starting with .)
Synology system directories: #recycle, @eaDir
Calibre trash: .caltrash

⚡ Tips

Name files to match the folder for the most reliable grouping
Use subfolders if you have multiple formats of the same book
Don't mix different books in the same folder when using Book Per Folder mode
Rescan your library after reorganizing files on disk
Watch Folders can be enabled to auto-detect new, changed, or deleted files without manual rescans

📖 Supported Formats​

🔍 How Detection Works​

🏷️ Name Normalization​

📂 Folder-Based Grouping (Auto Detect)​

🔢 Series Detection​

📄 Root-Level Files​

🎧 Audiobook Folder Detection​

📚 Recommended Structures​

📖 Ebooks Only​

📖 Ebooks with Multiple Formats​

🎧 Single-File Audiobook​

🎧 Chaptered Audiobook​

What won't work​

📖🎧 Ebook + Audiobook Together​

🦸 Comics​

📚 Series​

📂 Author Folders​

📄 Flat Files (No Folders)​

🚫 Ignored Paths​

⚡ Tips​